Was I "glutened?"

[GF4LifeinWI]

I was diagnosed with celiac disease 1-1/2 years ago. I recently ate at a neighborhood restaurant chain and had an item on their "gluten free menu." About 6 hours later I was in the bathroom with cramps and diarrhea. Does this mean that I was "glutened?" Did I do any damage to my healing intestines?

[rosetapper23]

Yes, it's possible that you were glutened via contamination. Hopefully, no damage was done. In about a month's time, if any damage WAS done, you'll notice symptoms of malabsorption of one or more nutrients: iron anemia, low B-12 (shortness of breath), stress fractures in your feet, etc. If you feel fine after a month, you probably did not cause any serious harm to your small intestine. Please don't stress in the meantime--chances are good that you'll feel okay after your immediate digestive problems subside. These occasional glutenings happen to us all....and most of the time we get over them quickly. You may feel a little dizzy, foggy-brained, have a headache, feel stuffed up, and perhaps have stiff joints tomorrow if you, indeed, got glutened....but, again, these symptoms will subside within a few days.

[kittty]

Yes, it's possible that you were glutened via contamination. Hopefully, no damage was done. In about a month's time, if any damage WAS done, you'll notice symptoms of malabsorption of one or more nutrients: iron anemia, low B-12 (shortness of breath), stress fractures in your feet, etc. If you feel fine after a month, you probably did not cause any serious harm to your small intestine. Please don't stress in the meantime--chances are good that you'll feel okay after your immediate digestive problems subside. These occasional glutenings happen to us all....and most of the time we get over them quickly. You may feel a little dizzy, foggy-brained, have a headache, feel stuffed up, and perhaps have stiff joints tomorrow if you, indeed, got glutened....but, again, these symptoms will subside within a few days.

Stress fractures in the feet can be linked to Celiacs? Do you have some more information about that? I've dealt with stress fractures (specifically in my left foot) for SO many years, and I never had a clue that it could be linked to gluten. I just read that line in your post, and it was like a lightbulb went off.